Target Corp. said Wednesday that long-time chief executive Brian Cornell will relinquish the top job on 1 Feb 2026 after 11 years steering the Minneapolis-based retailer. The board unanimously elected chief operating officer Michael Fiddelke, a 20-year company veteran who began as a summer intern in 2003, to succeed him. Cornell will stay on as executive chair of the board. The leadership change was announced alongside quarterly results that showed another drop in sales, underscoring the challenge Fiddelke will inherit as shoppers pull back on discretionary purchases and the chain contends with heightened competition from Walmart and Amazon. Fiddelke told investors his early priorities will be to restore Target’s “merchandising authority,” enhance the in-store and digital guest experience and accelerate the use of technology—including expanded deployment of artificial intelligence—to speed decision-making and cut costs. Wall Street reacted coolly to the insider pick. Target shares fell roughly 8%–9% after the news, adding to a multiyear slide that has left the stock lagging major retail peers. Several analysts said the company needed an external voice to reboot strategy, though others described Fiddelke as a steady hand who already leads an internal ‘Enterprise Acceleration Office’ charged with streamlining operations. The planned hand-off caps a turbulent period for Target, which has grappled with weak traffic, rising shrink, and consumer boycotts tied to its shifting approach on diversity and inclusion. Whether an insider steeped in the company’s culture can reverse the downward trend now becomes the central question for investors heading into 2026.